The Wise guide to cooking

Organisation is the key to ensuring that having the children home for the school holidays doesn’t leave a bitter taste

M
any will argue that the secret to a good pie is the pastry, but I wonder if
they have four children under the age of 11? As much as we strive to cook
everything from scratch, and pastry being one of the easier things to make,
there are plenty of times where we reach for the ready-to-roll versions.

We have met several sets of parents over the past few weeks and all are
showing signs of glee mixed with terror at the thought of the children being
at home for eight weeks.

The key to ensuring everybody has a good time is organisation. This week, we
have a recipe for straightforward meat pies, or pasties, that even novice
cooks can master.

We tend to make these at the weekend, using variations of ground turkey, pork
or beef, and the children love stashing them in their lunch boxes, too. They
are